Trousers-stretcher.



No. 801,836. PATENTBD 001217, 1905.

c. s. BARRELL & a. H. KNIGHT. TROUSERS STRETGHBR.

APPLICATION FILED 1330.22, 1904.

UNITED STATES PATENT GFFIGE.

CHARLES S. BARRELL, OF BOSTON, AND RICHARD H. KNIGHT, OF SOMERVILLE, MASSACHUSETTS.

TROUSERS-STRETCHER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 1'7, 1905.

Application filed December 22, 1904. Serial No. 237,945.

To all whom, it may concern Be it known that we, CHARLES S. BARRELL, residing in Boston, in the county of Suffolk, and RICHARD H. KNIGHT, residing in Somerville, in the county of Middlesex, State of Massachusetts, citizens of the United States, have invented an Improvement in Trousers- Stretchers, of which the following description, in connectionwith the accompanying drawings, is a specification, like characters on the drawings representing like parts.

This invention relates to a device or apparatus for stretching and creasing trousers, and has for its object to provide a simple and efficient device for the purpose specifiedand one which can be inserted into and removed from the trousers substantially in an instant and which is also capable of being used with trousers of different widths. For this purpose I employ two substantially parallel members which are adapted to engage the trousers on the inner side, and I connect the same at or near their opposite ends by spring members which may be made integral with the creasing members. Provision is made for expanding and contracting the stretching members, which may be accomplished bya device which is connected with said stretcher and is moved longitudinally thereof, the said device when moved in'one direction permitting expansion of the stretcher and when moved in the opposite direction contracting said stretcher. Provision is also made for stretching the trousers longitudinally and holding them in their elongated position, as will be described.

These and other features of this invention will be pointed out in the claims at the end of this specification.

Figure 1 is an elevation of a trousers stretcher and creaser embodying this invention, showing the same in its contracted position within the trousers. Fig. 2 is an elevation of the stretcher in its expanded position, and Figs. 3 and 4 details to be referred to.

Referring to the drawings, a 6 represent two substantially parallel creasing members which are designed to engage the inner side of the trousers and are preferably metal bars or rods substantially V-shaped in cross-section to form a creasing edge 0. (See Fig. 4.) The creasing members a 6 are connected at or near the1r opposite ends by spring members 6 f, preferably made as herein shown and consisting of wire rods, which may be integral with the creasing members ab. The spring member e is provided with a substantially central looped portion 5, having substantially straight end portions 6, which are integrally connected with one end of the creasing members by the portions 7 which may be fastened to the members a Z) by the loops or links 8. The spring member f is also provided with a looped portion 9, which is joined to one end of the members a b and extends in the same direction as the looped portion 5 of the member a. The looped portions 5 9 of the spring members are joined together by a tie-bar 10, which may be trough-shaped, as represented in Fig. 3, and which is secured to the looped portions of the spring members by staples or wires 12.

The spring members a f serve to expand.

the stretcher and move the stretching-bars (a Z) away from each other, and provision is made for controlling the said expansion and effecting movement of the said members toward each other to contract the stretcher. For this purpose the looped portions of the spring members 6 f are engaged by loops or yokes 14 15, which are secured, as by staples 16 17 to an actuating device shown as a bar 18, which fits into and slides in the trough-shaped tie-bar 10, as represented in Fig.2.

The actuating-bar 18 is provided at its upper or outer end with a projecting portion 19, constituting a handle by means of which the said bar may be moved longitudinally in its guidenamely, the tie-bar 1()so as to move the yokes 14: 15 longitudinally on the looped portions of the spring members, and thereby permit the said spring members to expand when the yokes are moved in one direction and to contract said spring members when the yokes are moved in the opposite direction.

In Fig. 1 the spring members are shown in their contracted position, and by reference thereto it will be seen that the stretching and creasing members are substantially near together and are separated by a distance less than the width of the legs of the trousers 21, (indicated by dotted lines,) which permits the stretcher to be quickly and easily inserted into the leg of the trousers. When the stretcher is inserted into the leg of the trousers, the

bar 18 is drawn longitudinally in the dircc tion indicated by the arrow 20, Fig. 1, thereby moving the yokes 14 15 from the lower end of the looped portions of the spring members toward the upper end of the same, and as said yokes are moved toward the upper end of thelooped portions of said spring members the latter are free to expand, thus moving the stretching members a b laterally into engagement with the trousers 21 and stretching the same laterally, as represented in Fig. 2.

As represented in Fig. 2, the yokes 14 15 are at substantially the upper or outer end of the looped portions of the springs, and the stretching bars or members are forced into engagement with the trousers by the full pressure of the spring members, and by providing the outer surface of the stretching members with a substantially sharp edge, as represented in Fig. 4, the trousers are not only stretched laterally, but are also creased.

When it is desiredto remove the stretcher from the trousers, the actuating-bar 18 is moved in the direction opposite to that indicated by the arrow 20, which causes the yokes 14 15 to slide over the looped portions of the springs, thereby compressing or contracting the same, so as to move the members a b toward each other sufliciently to readily permit the stretcher to be withdrawn from the trousers. Provision is made for retaining the trousers from movement longitudinally on the stretcher, and for this purpose the stretching members are provided near their opposite ends with a series of holes or openings 25 26 for the reception of pins or like fastening devices 27 28, which are passed through the trousers into said holes, as represented in Fig. 2, the holes at the upper end of said members inclining downward and those at the opposite end inclining upward. In this manner the trousers after being stretched laterally may have one end fastened by the pins 27 and then stretched by hand longitudinally and fastened at their opposite end by the pins 28. This is especially serviceable in taking out the wrinkles at the waist and knee portions of the trousers and also to keep the trousers in their proper or adjusted position on the stretcher.

We have herein represented the stretcher as occupying its extreme open position in Fig. 2 and its extreme closed position in Fig. 1, but said stretcher may be made to assume any intermediate position and be locked in said intermediate position by providing suitable means for locking the actuating device or bar 18 into the position it is moved to obtain the proper spacing of the stretching-bars. The

locking of the actuating device may be accomplished in any suitable manner, and in the present instance we have shown one means for accomplishing this result. For this purpose the bar 10 is provided with a longitudinallyextended slot 30, through which projects a screw 31, which is extended through a hole in the bar 18 and is provided above the bar 18 with a thumb-nut 32, which is loosened when the bar 18 is to be moved and which is set up when it is desired to lock the stretching members in any desired position.

We may prefer to make the parts of the stretcher of metal and to make the spring members integral with the stretching members, but we do not desire to limit our invention in this respect. The inclined portions 7 may be connected with the stretching-bars by links or staples 8, as represented in Figs. 1 and 2, so that the springs and side bars may be made in one piece and yet have the upper and lower ends of the stretching-bars moved simultaneously and in the same direction by the springs.

We may prefer to employ a single actuating device or bar 18, which is movable longitudinally for operating both ends of the stretching members; but we do not desire to limit our invention in this respect, as it is evident that each end of the stretching-bars might be operated independently of the other.

We claim 1. In a device of the character described, in combination, stretching members, spring members connected to said stretching members and provided with looped portions extended in the same direction, a tie-bar connecting said looped portions, yokes engaging said looped portions, and an actuating-bar for said yokes in sliding engagement with said tie-bar, substantially as described.

2. In a device of the character described,

in combination, stretching members, spring members connected to said stretching members and provided with looped portions extended in the same direction, a tie-bar connecting said looped portions, yokes engaging said looped portions, an actuating-bar for said yokes in sliding engagement with said tie-bar, and means to lock said actuating-bar to said tie-bar in an intermediate position, substantially as described.

3. In a device of the character described, in combination, stretching members, spring members connected to said stretching members having creasing edges for engagement with the trousers and provided with looped portions extended in the same direction, a tiebar connecting said looped'portions, yokes engaging said looped portions, and an actuating-bar for said yokes in sliding engagement with said tie-bar, substantially as described.

4. In a device of the character described, in combination, stretching members, spring members connected to said stretching members and provided with looped portions extended in the same direction, a tie-bar connecting said looped portions, yokes engaging said looped portions, and an actuating-bar for said yokes in sliding engagement with said tie-bar, substantially as described.

5. In a device of the character described, in combination, stretching members, spring members cooperating with said stretching members to force the latter apart, means to connect said spring members, and a longitudinally-movable actuating device cooperating With said members to control the movement of said stretching members, substantially as described.

6. In a device of the character described, in combination, stretching members adapted to be inserted in a leg of the trousers and provided With openings near their opposite ends, spring members to force said stretching members laterally into engagement With said trousers, and means inserted through said trousers and into said openings for restraining said trousers from longitudinal movement on said stretching members, substantially as described.

7. In a device of the character described,

Witnesses:

J AS. H. CHURCHILL, J. MURPHY. 

